Recently, plans to rebuild Belmont’s Underwood Pool had stalled after the winning bidder dropped out, potentially leaving the Belmont community without a public swimming area next summer. After the Belmont Savings Bank Foundation announced last month plans to match funding, over 400 donations arrived from the Belmont community, with amounts ranging from $10 to $25,000. Ellen Schreiber, who helped lead the campaign, characterized the funding drive kick-started by the bank foundation as among the fastest she had ever seen.

“We are grateful to the many hundreds of Belmont residents who gave so generously, so quickly to make the new Underwood Pool a reality: the response has been overwhelming. Many people sent checks together with notes about how much the pool means to them – including memories from childhoods as well as hopes for future generations,” said Schreiber. “Our sincere thanks go to Belmont Savings Bank for all of their support in this fundraising campaign. The foundation’s $200,000 matching grant gave us hope and created excitement from the start of the campaign. Belmont is lucky to have a committed partner like Belmont Savings Bank, who joined the drive in such a bold and meaningful way.”

The Underwood Pool was originally constructed in 1912, and is believed to be the first public outdoor pool in the United States.

“We are thrilled everyone in the community has come together to save the historic Underwood Pool—I have lived in Belmont all my life, so it comes with great satisfaction to know our foundation contributed to securing this funding,” said Robert Morrissey, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Belmont Savings Bank as well as the Belmont Savings Bank Foundation. “This is our foundation’s purpose and we are thrilled to have made an impact on the Belmont community.”

Under the current circumstances, the Underwood Pool Building Committee was faced with redesigning and rebidding the project, in effect cancelling the pool’s summer 2015 season. The involvement of the Belmont Savings Bank Foundation enabled supporters to raise the necessary funds in order to accept the current lowest bid before the upcoming October deadline.

“More than the dollars involved, what is truly significant about this project is that it allowed members of the Belmont community to join forces and collaborate to save this essential piece of Belmont history,” said Bob Mahoney, President and CEO of Belmont Savings Bank. “The Underwood Pool has meant so much to so many for generations, it was our duty as Belmont’s community bank to do whatever we could to ensure the project’s preservation. This is an immense team effort, and I congratulate all parties involved.”

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